People » Deborah C. Beidel

“Dr. Beidel will not be accepting graduate students for the 2020-2021 academic year.”

Deborah C. Beidel, Ph.D., ABPP is Pegasus Professor of Psychology and Medical Education and Director of UCF RESTORES at the University of Central Florida. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh and completed a post-doctoral fellowship in clinical research at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic. Dr. Beidel holds Diplomates in Clinical Psychology and Behavioral Psychology from the American Board of Professional Psychology and is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Association for Psychological Science. She is the author of over 250 scientific publications including journal articles, book chapters and books on the treatment of anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder and has been the recipient of over $19 million dollars in research funding throughout her career. Her recent work focuses on utilizing technology to translate and disseminate efficacious treatments for anxiety disorders and post-traumatic stress disorder into standard clinical practice. Currently, she is the principal investigator of a Department of Defense funded research program conducting a randomized controlled trial for the treatment of combat-related posttraumatic stress disorders, a Department of Defense funded research program examining familial stress during military deployment, and an NIMH funded randomized trial to develop artificially intelligent avatars to assist in the treatment of children with social anxiety disorders. Along with her colleague, Dr. Clint Bowers, she is developing a new multi-disciplinary center devoted to using technology to enhance and disseminate empirically supported treatments for anxiety, stress and trauma-related disorders

“Dr. Beidel will not be accepting graduate students for the 2020-2021 academic year.”

Dr. Beidel directs the RESearch and Treatment On Response to Extreme Stressors (UCF RESTORES), a clinical research center dedicated to the study of all facets of anxiety, trauma and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) including etiology, psychopathology, treatment, resilience and prevention. A unique feature of UCF RESTORES is the development and use of established and emerging technologies to enhance prevention and intervention efforts.

Current federally funded research programs include:

Beidel, D.C., Frueh, B.C., & Uhde, T.W. (Principal Investigator). Trauma Management Therapy for OIF/OEF Veterans (Award 08214003) . $5,379,994. U.S. Army Medical Research & Materiel Command-Military Operational Medicine Research Program (USAMRMC-MOMRP), 2010-2016. This randomized controlled trial examines the effectiveness of two different treatments for warriors of the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts who are suffering from combat-related PTSD. The program will use established behavioral treatments for this disorder augmented by the use of virtual reality to provide an enhanced treatment experience.

Beidel, D.C., Alfano, C.A., Bunnell, B., Higa McMillan, C., & Frueh, B.C. (Principal Investigator). When Parents Go To War: Psychosocial Adjustment Among the Families of Deployed OEF/OIF Service Members (Award Number W81XWH-13-1-0058). Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, Defense Health Program, $3,191,583, 2013-2017. This multi-center trial examines the impact of military deployment on spouses and children using neurobiological measures of stress as well as traditional measures of psychological adjustment.

This project is creating artificially intelligent avatars, which will integrated into an existing, empirically supported treatment program for children with social anxiety disorder with the goal of enhancing generalization of treatment effects. Additionally, serious gaming strategies are used to develop homework assignments that increase homework compliance